Michael W Smith: The bestselling male Christian music artist in the world

Tony Cummings reports on a CCM bestseller who is also something of a evengelical sex symbol.

Michael W Smith

It was on a cold February evening in Nashville, Tennessee that the
phenomenon that is Michael W. Smith finally came into focus for me. It
was row upon row of squealing girls that did it. Somehow the penny
hadn't dropped until then. I'd seen the album sleeves of course. The
flashing good looks and the designer stubble. But somehow I didn't
have Michael W. Smith pegged as a less-sleazy-than-George-Michael
target of nice Christian girls pubescent fantasies. But here was a
theatre full of giggling and squealing fantasisers. It was kind of
disappointing. It didn't say much for the maturity of America's pop
gospel scene. And up until then I naively thought Michael had become
America's top selling male artist (a gob-smacking four different
albums now having gone platinum) purely on his musical ability, which
is far from inconsiderable. After all it takes real talent to play
such inventive keyboards and write some of those gloriously catchy
pop-gospel tunes and though his voice isn't the stuff of soul music
legends he uses his white-boy wheeze within its limitations to often
compelling effect. 'Michael W. Smith 2', I 2(Eye)' and now 'Go West
Young Man' (with a major promotional push from secular giant Geffen)
are finely crafted pop albums which show their sparkle despite the
misguided behaviour of Bible Belt American misses turning music into
idolatry. The more I thought about it the more it became obvious that
Michael wasn't happy to be some kind of evangelical sex symbol. He had
gone out of his way to be photographed with wife and four (yes four)
children in recent years and in several interviews has displayed both
a seriousness about his musical craft and a very real desire to
communicate spiritual truth through the difficult vehicle of the pop
album and video. Whether Geffen will be able to turn this giant of
subcultural popularity into a mainstream pop megastar remains to be
seen (it should be remembered that a previous attempt with The Big
Picture' album never even began to get off the ground). What is
certain however is that as long as there is a public for songs that
speak of battles against temptation, and victories through a heart
filled with Christ's Spirit set to catchy dance-pop rhythms, Michael
W. Smith will provide them whether or not the squealing girls
continue.

While a number of the top CCM artists were rock artists prior to
conversion it was the other way around for Michael. He grew up hearing
the wind in the West Virginia trees, the great hymns at church, his
grandmother's Chopin lessons, choral works at school, the inimitable
pop stylists, a little calypso along the way - all in addition to the
Beatles and rock 'n' roll.

Michael's memories of the early days are not all that soaring. "I
became a Christian at the age of ten. In the eighth grade I walked
down the aisle to dedicate my life to some form of fulltime service,"
he recalls. "But after I graduated from high school, I went wild.

"At the time I thought I was mad at God, I was bummed out. I obviously
had all this talent, but nothing was happening. Now I think I was mad
at myself, because I hadn't prepared myself as fully as I needed to.
You can't do it on talent alone. I try to encourage people today to do
your homework! Everybody wants it - no matter what 'it' is - all too
easy. And I was one of them!

"From time to time I'd realise I needed to work harder. For four or
five months one time I took piano lessons off Mary Shipp Mann. She's a
concert pianist and was Shane Keister's teacher. She told me that if I
wasn't going to practise, don't come back. I didn't go back. I was
still partying when I moved to Nashville in '78. I knew I wasn't doing
what God wanted me to do. I tried running away - drugs and the whole
thing. Finally I realised my anger was at myself. And then I began
praying, 'Lord, I'll press on, till I'm more like you.'"

By 1979, based in Nashville, Michael W. Smith was beginning to make
headway as a gospel music songwriter and session player. He also began
to engage in occasional gospel tours first with group Higher Ground
then in the early 80's gospel's emergent first lady, Amy Grant. It was
the huge popularity of a Smith song on Amy's classic 'Age To Age',
"How Majestic Is Your Name" which soon led to Smith recording his
first album in 1983 'The Michael W. Smith Project'. The launch as a
solo-artist career for the behind-the-scenes stalwart was something of
a surprise for Michael.

"I wanted to do a pop album in L.A. with Randy Cox at Tree," remembers
Michael. "That's what I honestly thought God wanted me to do at that
point. I had some things I needed to say to that audience, and I felt
that was the way to do it. Then, through a whole bunch of situations
that aren't easy to list in order, we got to talking to (managers)
Mike Blanton and Dan Harrell."

Michael's grin fills a pause as he makes an effort to list some of the
"situations."

"Well, first one thing and then another, you know. They'd say, 'How
d'you feel about this or that?' And I'd say, 'That sounds good.' And
next thing you know we were working on the first album. Expecting that
it might sell 30,000 copies, it sold 200,000. That was a surprise!"

The unexpected success of 'The Michael W. Smith' Project was due in
part to his high profile appearances as accompanist to Amy Grant. He
quickly learnt how to work a large audience. "When you get out there
in front of as many people as Amy draws you learn to relate to the
crowd in a hurry", Michael laughs.

'Michael W. Smith Project' was a decidedly flawed small-budget album
with all the songs written with his wife Debbie. It did however
contain two classics - the worshipful "Great Is The Lord" and the
haunting ballad tribute to friendship "Friends" (knocked out one
afternoon as a tribute to a Bible-study friend called Bill Jackson).
For the follow up Michael brought in some more collaborators including
Gary Chapman and Amy Grant. 'Michael W. Smith 2' was a near perfect
selection of synth-pop bubblers with one or two anthemic choruses. It
zoomed to the top of America's Christian music charts, won a Grammy
Award and by the time Michael set out on his first headlining tour - a
52 city skate across the States and Canada in 1986 with support act
Kathy Troccoli - he was already a CCM star. Michael is very aware of
the spiritual dangers of his huge success within evangelicalism.

"Anyone in leadership is more accountable. I seriously believe that
because of the success I'm having, I walk a fine line. It's not easy,
but I accept that as part of doing what God wants me to do. I realise
that the Enemy - and I mean Satan - won't miss a chance to distract me
from what I'm doing. I have to be on guard every minute.

"I understand the power of music - all that excitement on stage, all
that energy. I could tell 'em to do most anything, and half of 'em
would do it. That's a heavy responsibility. Yet, I don't get paranoid
about it. I don't spend hours before a concert worrying about whether
I'm gonna do or say the wrong thing. I just get out there and enjoy
it. I fully and completely believe I'm doing what God wants me to do,
and that He'll provide me with the strength I need."

Michael needed all the Lord's strength to deal with the controversy
that broke out with the release of his next album 'The Big Picture' in
1986. Denounced on national television by TV evangelist Jimmy
Swaggart, even Christians of a less rock-hating fundamentalist breed
found The Big Picture' a lyrical compromise. With the strongly overt
message of its predecessors abandoned in favour of obtuse
semi-mystical imagery and rather heavy handed social comment it was
seen by his critics as a crass 'dump the Jesus references' quest for a
Top 40 hit.

Reader Comments

Posted by Don @ 16:50 on Aug 15 2011

This is quite an indepth look at top CCM artist Michael W.
Smith from a stout believer's point of view. I thought that
CCM artists one main goal was to bring CHRIST to the world
through their music. Instead, they are selling a sexy image
with top name brand wear. I agree with the above writer "IT
IS VERY
DISPPOINTING!". I fear that, the singer is being worshipped
more than what the song is saying; and it
is so sad, as these CCM singers have great songs!
Are CCM singers separate from the world? they offer, posters
to hang up, buttons to wear, t-shirts for fans of their
idolized singer etc.: have CCM artists gone off track? We
are commanded to flee idolatry! If Michael W. Smith is
somewhat of an evangelical sex symbol,
SOMETHING IS WRONG WITH THE BIG PICTURE!
May GOD continue His work in all!

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